PRETTY WHEN YOU'RE MEAN

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asked, genuinely curious. She looked up. "That it's too late to change how you see me." I didn't answer right away. Because I wasn't sure. She was still Abby, but she wasn't the same girl who used to throw insults like knives in the hallway. This version seemed... real. Nervous. Maybe even sincere. "I saw you at the party," I said suddenly. "You kissed that guy. And then you left like the room was on fire." Her eyes flicked to the side, avoiding mine. "It felt like it was." "Why?" Another pause. Her hands curled around her cup like she needed the warmth. "Because I didn't want it to be him," she admitted. Silence stretched between us, but it wasn't uncomfortable this time. It was heavy. Weighted with all the words we hadn't said for years. "Then who did you want it to be?" I asked, my voice low. She looked up. Right into my eyes. "You." Abby's POV I'd never said it out loud before. Not even to myself, not really. But the second it left my lips, I felt something lift off my chest, like releasing a breath I'd been holding for years. Ella didn't say anything. Her face went blank not angry, not confused. Just... frozen. I kept going before I lost the nerve. "In high school, I didn't understand it. You were just this... bright light. And I was drawn to it, but I didn't know why. So,I made it easier on